Glen Ridge History
Glen Ridge is one of the few U. S. towns still using gas lamps instead of electric lighting.
Sandwiched between its larger neighbors Montclair, Bloomfield and East Orange, Glen Ridge is a residential suburb full of grand historic houses and leafy green parks.
The borough was originally a neighborhood of Bloomfield, which in turn was once part of Newark.
Known formanyyears as Ridgewood or“ the Hill,” Glen Ridge was home to farms and some small factories, many of which were located along Toney’ sBrook in the center of town, for many years beforestarting to make the transition to arailroad suburb in the late 19th century. Today, the Glen and Toney’ sBrookare arecreationalgreen spacealongside the train tracks, though remnants of the old millscan still be seen.
When the town got its own post office, the name had to change from Ridgewood to Glen Ridge, since there was already a town called Ridgewood in the area. In 1895, residents voted to split from Bloomfield, after years of resentment that Glen Ridge was not getting the same level of services as the rest of the town.
The borough is especially well-known for its school district, usuallycited by incoming families asthe reason they are moving to Glen Ridge. The district has four schools: Forest Avenue School, Linden Avenue School, Ridgewood Avenue School and Glen Ridge High School. The borough is also home to several parks and athletic fields, including Hurrell Field, Carteret Park, Sherman Avenue Field, Clay Field and Forest Avenue Field.
One of Glen Ridge’ s distinguishing features is the gas lamps that light the borough’ s streets. The borough is one of only ahandful of towns in the United States that still use gas lamps instead of electric lighting, and one of only two towns in Essex County; the other is South Orange.
The Glen Ridge Public Libraryofficially formed in 1912, out of aliterary societyand book group that had existed in town for several years. The library operated out of Glen Ridge Hall on Ridgewood Avenue before moving into itscurrent home in 1918.
Before the municipal building on Bloomfield Avenue opened in 1938, Glen Ridge’ s town offices were located on the second floor of the Arcade, aline of shops and offices at 855 Bloomfield Avenue.
In 2000, the borough’ sannual Thanksgiving Day race was renamed the Ashenfelter 8K Classic in honor of resident Horace Ashenfelter, who had won the gold medal( and set anew world record) for steeplechase at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki. The annual race, which also includes the one-mile Ridger Romp and Fun Run, has raised more than $ 100,000 for the Glen Ridge Educational Foundation.
As of the 2010 census, the borough’ s population was 7,529 people, 48 percent male and 51 percent female. ◆
Sources: Glen Ridge borough website; Glen Ridge school district website; Glen Ridge Historical Society website; U. S. Census data; past coverage by the Glen Ridge Voice;“ Our Guys,” by Bernard Lefkowitz
DALE MINCEY
24 Essex Community Guide | 2016